Top 10 Most Powerful Sith Lords from Star Wars

Darth Sidious brought the Jedi Order to the brink of extinction. He was arguably the most powerful Force user of Darth Bane's Rule of Two, excluding Bane himself. He brought the Sith out of hiding and formed the Galactic Empire, a Sith-controlled puppet state. He accomplished all of this with minimal effort, having his apprentices do all the dirty work for him. When engaged in combat, he was overwhelming, except during the fight with Mace Windu, where he showed vulnerability to sway Anakin to his side. He is the most intelligent Sith Lord, bar none. The only Sith lord in his class is Darth Bane. You could say Sidious is Bane's creation through his Rule of Two. Darth Sidious is the culmination of a thousand years of Sith philosophy and teachings.

Darth Sidious was the most powerful Sith ever. He possessed twenty billion people and then drained them all simultaneously. He created Force storms capable of destroying entire planets and could warp reality and teleport across the galaxy. When extremely angry, he created Force-induced hurricanes. Upon his death, he created a dark Force nexus. In legends, he died multiple times before being dragged into the deepest, darkest depths of the Force. He could only be killed by unorthodox methods. The only Sith who could actually beat him is Vitiate. Nevertheless, Palpatine would likely have predicted Vitiate's every move. He knew all seven lightsaber forms despite his disdain for them. If left uncontested, he would probably have ruled the galaxy forever.

The Jedi turned Sith, then neutral. This man, no, this God of Destruction, was defeated only through the cowardly betrayal of a Sith named Scourge, a coward out only to save his own life. He brought the Emperor to his knees before betrayal destroyed him. He was all-consuming, calling upon the Light, as well as the Dark, in a way of Gray. He fed his power of the Dark Side with the emotions of the Light Side - compassion, loyalty, and love - so as to create power never before used or known.

Unlike the Emperor, who stole his power and immortality from a world and thus had power that was not truly his, Revan CREATED his power from himself. He himself was powerful enough to destroy the power of the world forced into one man, only to be brought down by a traitor. So, he may have been defeated, but the only man capable of doing so used power that was not truly his, and that is why Revan is the stronger of the two.

Revan influenced Bane, who is also incredibly powerful, in the Rule of Two. Revan was the Savior and the Scourge of the galaxy. The galaxy is saved or destroyed by his whim.

Vitiate killed his father with just a thought and then slowly tortured his mother through the Force. His eyes were pure black! He absorbed a planet's energy and thereby made himself immortal. He basically destroyed a planet just with his powers of the Force. He also imprisoned not only 12 of the most powerful Sith Lords of their time in their minds, but he did it all at the same time. Meanwhile, he imprisoned two of the most powerful Jedi just by thinking (Revan and Malak). He can take the body of others and use them for himself.

Also, when he decided that he was bored with controlling the two most powerful Jedi ever, he just killed them both with one Force blast. He took over the galaxy and ruled it for over 5,000 years. If you're thinking of voting for Revan, then think again because Vitiate killed him with only one powerful Force blast, in which he wasn't even making an effort. (He killed Malak too, so don't vote for him either).

So, to recap, don't just vote for people who you know, as they probably aren't the most powerful. (I.e., Palpatine, Vader) And if you want to think about true POWER, then you have to think WAY back and not just at the films you've seen. Thanks for reading, guys, and remember... VOTE VITIATE!

Bane was far more influential in the grand scheme of things than many of the other Sith mentioned. He was never a Jedi either, which should put him ahead in terms of purity. While some may have been stronger with the Force, better with a lightsaber, or smarter/more cunning, no one was stronger with all of these characteristics combined. He could, therefore, use other aspects of his power against those who were stronger in one aspect. He completely revolutionized the Sith (albeit with Revan's ideologies), and (SPOILERS!) he may not have actually died at the hands of his apprentice as many believe he did.

Darth Vitiate is often considered the most powerful due to his long life and rule. However, the greatness of Darth Bane lies in his pursuit of datacrons from the most formidable dark Force users, including Vitiate, thereby acquiring their knowledge of the Force.

He is undoubtedly one of the greatest lightsaber duelists of all time and possesses significant brute strength, speed, and stamina. His cunning is also comparable to that of Sidious. Through the Rule of Two and the elimination of other Sith, he deceived the Jedi into believing that dark Force users had been eradicated.

Darth Bane maintained a false identity, amassing wealth and information while orchestrating the downfall of the Jedi and the Republic. Besides his natural affinity for the Force, he was an innovative thinker who was not influenced by popular opinion. He delved deeply into Sith archives, quickly mastering rare abilities like the Force storm.

Even before attending the Sith Academy, he was a master of battle strategy. He eventually learned the art of essence transfer, which I believe he utilized before his purported death. The conclusion of the Bane trilogy subtly suggests that he survived through this transfer technique.

I appreciate all the characters listed here. Choosing a favorite is difficult. Many people pick based on personal preferences without fully understanding the Star Wars universe. I love Revan for his unique duality and his ability to resist and even influence Vitiate. His story of overcoming obstacles and achieving redemption is inspiring.

However, I believe Darth Bane and Darth Plagueis have progressed the most in terms of knowledge and power. Darth Vitiate may possess the most raw power, bordering on omniscience, but each Sith Lord offers something unique. I'm grateful for the diverse array of authors and characters in Star Wars. Truly, this is fiction at its finest.

The Chosen One being below some losers is funny. He should be at least 2nd place after Sidious. This is a stupid joke. Like, what did Darth Revan do so impressive other than looking cool? Darth Vitiate is super overrated, and even Kenobi could beat Darth Bane if they met.

First of all, if they aren't canon, then they're out. That currently leaves 6 in the running: Bane, Plagueis, Sidious, Maul, Tyranus, and Vader. Now reorder them by importance to the plot, and you'll find that Vader lands preeminent. Vader is arguably the most recognizable villain in cinema, let alone from this franchise, contributing to its early success while the Emperor wasn't even a main character until Return of the Jedi.

Now imagine a hypothetical situation where each of the canonical Sith broke the bounds of time to be pitted against one another. You can bet your bottom dollar that George Lucas would have Vader as the last man standing, and that's how I came to my conclusion.

The thing with Darth Nihilus, by comparison to other Sith Lords, is that he's a Force vampire. They devour the Force, and with each foe defeated and each power used against him, he became stronger. No matter who he faced, he would always be destined to win. The only reason he was ever able to be defeated was because Visas had a Force bond and Meetra is another Force vampire (although much less skilled at absorbing the Force). Even Darth Vitiate should fear one such as he, since Vitiate's incredible power with the Force becomes basically useless any time they're even thinking about one another.

The fact that a powerful Force vampire like him was even able to be defeated was purely a matter of circumstance and knowing manipulation from Kreia, and were he to live much longer, the entire galaxy would've been at his fingertips should he wish it.

Nihilus shouldn't even be questioned for the number one spot. He is obviously the biggest threat to all life. His presence absorbs life, and his voice once destroyed an entire planet of Jedi in another solar system. Just speaking was enough to annihilate the planet.

He also achieved immortality, with his spirit being encased in his mask and armor. He was alexithymic, meaning he lacked any emotion, so he felt absolutely nothing when killing people. Nihilus was the driving force behind the Purge of the Jedi, wiping out entire planets and consuming their Force essence. This made him more powerful each time.

So powerful was he that his body began to decay into literal Force energy, forcing him to merge his spirit with his mask and armor. He embodies the Force and wields ancient Force techniques such as Dark Rage, Farsight (which is more common), Force Scream, Force Resistance, and Force Whirlwind, among others.

His most commonly used Force abilities include killing people through thought, sight, energy or life sapping, and implanting memories and thoughts into people to manipulate them. When he implanted thoughts into the mind of his apprentice, he incinerated her eyes. This guy can kill you by merely being near you or destroy a planet simply by speaking. He definitely deserves the number one spot.

Darth Plagueis is the master of Darth Sidious, and that's true as I found it in an Official Star Wars fact file and in a novel. He manipulated the midi-chlorians, allowing him to bring his loved ones back from the dead. He is quite famous.

Did you ever hear the Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise? I thought not. It's not a story the Jedi would tell you. It's a Sith legend. Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith, so powerful and so wise he could use the Force to influence the midichlorians to create life. He had such a knowledge of the dark side that he could even keep the ones he cared about from dying. The dark side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural. He became so powerful... the only thing he was afraid of was losing his power, which eventually, of course, he did. Unfortunately, he taught his apprentice everything he knew, then his apprentice killed him in his sleep. It's ironic he could save others from death, but not himself.

Exar Kun killed a number of Jedi and Sith that others can't even imagine. Exar Kun ranks at number 7 because most Star Wars "fans" have only watched a few movies and don't even recognize this name. His strength was legendary, and to kill his body, it took an entire army against one. To kill his spirit, an entire school of Jedi students was needed. No single Jedi or Sith could match his strength. He alone could defeat anything, anyone that stood in his way.

He was once the Dark Lord of the Sith, and his mentor was Freedon Nadd, possibly the greatest lightsaber duelist that ever lived. He invented the double-bladed saber and took the title of Dark Lord of the Sith.

He was one of the greatest wielders of the dark side of the Force and was one of the founders of the Sith Empire. I think he deserves better.

He killed a ton of powerful Jedi, had incredibly powerful Force abilities, raised an extremely badass army, recruited a ton of followers from the Jedi, and kept the Sith tradition alive. He also freed his soul from his body and stayed alive for 4000 years. How is he not number one?

Yes, Starkiller can use a lightning storm to enhance his Force lightning, but he can't send that same lightning attack into space like Palpatine could in Episode IX or the Dark Empire comic. He fried enormous Bull Rancors to death with overwhelming Force lightning and creamed wannabe Sith acolytes with ease, such as Maris Brood. And Vader didn't try to use the Inquisitors to help him kill Palpatine because he knew Palpatine would kill and beat all of them.

I'll admit, the video game characters are really overpowered. I mean, Obi-Wan was the first to defeat a Sith Lord in a one-on-one battle in a thousand years, and then there's Starkiller, who defeats Sith Lords and other Jedi as if he's swatting flies. Also, unlike Revan, who was swayed by both sides of the Force to varying degrees, Starkiller was swayed by neither, always doing his own thing, despite being raised to follow the dark side. In the end, all that mattered to him were those he loved, and neither side of the Force was going to take those away. Not to mention, Revan had a party for many of his feats, while Starkiller did everything alone.

Then there are his other feats. For instance, remember the fall that killed Windu? Starkiller fell many times that height and survived by cushioning himself through the Force alone. Remember how even Luke could only stalemate Sidious? Starkiller actually won against him. Starkiller has done many things to surpass even the greatest of Jedi by a ton. He deserved the number one spot.

Darth Maul is the most epic character that first came to Star Wars. As well as looking really cool, he is one of the best duelists in the galaxy. Sadly, he was defeated very early on by Obi-Wan Kenobi. But he somehow survived his injury and started to become a powerful Sith Lord. He took over Mandalore with a group known as Death Watch, which is now his personal army. He also trained an apprentice known as Savage Opress, who took on Darth Tyranus and Asajj Ventress at the same time. Darth Maul actually escaped Darth Sidious when captured and lived on to the age of the Empire where he killed the Inquisitors and still lives on. No one knows what happened to him, but you have to admit Darth Maul deserves some credit for surviving that long.

If I hear "he got killed by a Padawan" again... The dude was a young apprentice fresh off wiping out the Black Sun by himself and toyed with two Jedi simultaneously, clearly superior. It's not his fault the ending was terrible and Star Wars has an obsession with finishing off superior talent with endless pits (see Sidious). He wasn't going to take over the world or anything, but his talents were greatly underserved. He was a beast in the Clone Wars too, but I can't even take that seriously.

Dooku was one of the most powerful Jedi before he left the Order and learned more about the Dark Side of the Force, becoming even more powerful. He could battle powerful Jedi like Obi-Wan and Anakin by himself regularly and was able to hold them off without breaking a sweat. He only lost to Anakin because he was ordered to by his master. On top of that, he was very wise, and even Sidious was wary that if he wasn't kept in check, he could, with the help of his apprentice, overthrow him, which is up to speculation. Either way, Dooku was very powerful as both Sith and Jedi and should be ranked higher up as well.

Dooku is far more talented than Maul. The versatility ranges from expert swordsman/lightning-sadist (superior in my opinion to Maul) all the way to the façade of 'political idealism' and secretly building an army. The man's got talent, all force driven/inspired/blessed, whatever.

Darth Tyranus was basically Sidious' mini-me, an adequate distraction for the Jedi and Republic in every way - because he was a genuine threat in his own right, and had a nice big army bankrolled by his friends.

Darth Malgus was one of the only Sith Lords to keep the original ideas of the Sith Order, not following Sidious's Sith Order, which aimed to rule the galaxy.

Since the First Jedi Civil War, the First Great Schism, and the Second Great Schism, the Dark Side's whole motive was to destroy the Jedi. This ambition spilled over to the Republic when the Jedi swore to protect it. Darth Malgus, even after being betrayed by other high-ranking Sith, clung so strongly to that idea that he formed his own empire, believing in the concept of the true Sith Order: down with the Jedi, down with the Republic at all costs!

In lightsaber combat, Malgus was dominant. His brute strength through the Dark Side, combined with his natural physical size and rage, granted him a near unstoppable willpower. He was like Darth Bane, but without an obelisk attached to his body. He was like Darth Sion, except he didn't force himself to stay alive – he stayed alive because he was that formidable. It took a strike team to take down Darth Malgus. One-on-one, he was unbeatable. He lived up to the Sith Order, killing his wife, his master, and his allies. He was the reason the Jedi Temple was sacked. Malgus nearly did it all himself, fueled not by a desire to rule the galaxy, but by the downfall of the Republic, which gave him more power than any previous Sith Lord. He killed his master for failure, right on the spot, as a master should do to his apprentice – something Darth Bane, Sidious, and Dooku failed to do. He was on the Dark Side from the beginning, not sneaky or cunning, but brutal, angry, and merciless. He had no apprentice. No one was worthy of Malgus's teachings.

He was one of the reasons Korriban was recaptured. When he lost the battle on Alderaan against Shan, even though badly injured, with scorched lungs and severe facial damage, he turned around and killed two more Jedi before leaving. If not number one, Malgus is definitely in the top 10, even top five at that.

He has a scepter called the Scepter of Ragnos, which has the power to infuse a dead body, so the person can go back to life. This means Marka Ragnos is the second known Sith Lord in the history of the galaxy who can bring people back from death.

The only ancient Sith who didn't cause their own destruction, but led them to a golden age of strength and glory.

He was the most powerful of the most powerful of the Sith in the ancient Sith Empire. He was able to survive 5000 years as a spirit and nearly return in Jedi Academy. The corruption of his weakened spirit was strong enough to kill Tavion Axmis.

Indeed, Sion only died because he allowed himself to die. You cannot say anything similar about any other Sith Lord. No matter how many people you kill, lives you create, people you dominate, or how many planets you drain, if you are mortal and thus killed by another, you are a lesser Sith Lord than Darth Sion.

Number 9, what! He used the dark side of the Force to keep his decaying body together. If you cut off his arm, leg, or head, he would use the dark side to reattach and hold together. It made him immortal! Plus, he let himself die. No one killed him!

I don't care what this survey says... Darth Sion was the most powerful Sith ever! He is the only Sith to die of his own accord. Every other Sith was killed by enemies or apprentices.

He can absorb force-based attacks, including Grand Master Luke Skywalker's, and redirect them. He could even change what other Force sensitives could sense when searching for him through the Force, even including his uncle. He could even see the past and the future. He also wielded the ability to summon illusions, so powerful that they were extremely convincing and often impossible to judge whether it was reality or illusion. This ability could even allow the viewer's mind to decide who the projection was. This ability eventually allowed him to breach into a victim's mind and force his own will upon it, effectively making them puppets. He almost killed Jaina while missing an arm, having a broken leg, and having a hole through his body.

As a two-year-old, Jacen Solo was able to speak with animals through the Force, understanding their thoughts and making himself understood by them, and he could direct their behavior. He and Jaina were able to manifest their powers very early on, using telekinesis as two-year-olds to retrieve items from high shelves and make other mischief. By the time he was five, he could use tightly-focused telekinesis to move air molecules rapidly, heating them and creating a glow, and to slow water molecules enough to cause them to freeze.

I mean, come on, he was an extremely powerful Sith sorcerer. He had his own living meditation sphere controlled by thought, could reshape and reassemble itself to create whatever he needed, and focused Force energy to make him more powerful. He could even manipulate and destroy stars and solar activity! Plus, he's a pureblood Sith. What more can you ask?

I say Revan. He is very powerful and was actually thought to be the chosen one. Revan bested anyone he had ever faced and managed to become twice as powerful when he had been the Dark Lord. He even would have killed the Sith Emperor if he had not been distracted.

Naga Sadow was the very first Sith Lord and started the Sith Empire. That's got to count for something, right?

He's supposed to be at least somewhat weaker than Revan, but since everyone considers Revan a prodigy, that's not saying much. In my opinion, since Revan himself picked him as his second-in-command (which, considering the number of Jedi who followed him, must mean something), and since Malak remained in that position ever since, survived the war, and (apparently) never faced any significant opposition after getting rid of Revan, I think it's fair to say he was no weakling.

Darth Malak is a powerful Sith Lord in the Star Wars universe. He was the apprentice of Darth Revan and later became the Dark Lord of the Sith after killing him. Malak is known for his mastery of the dark side of the Force, and his ability to use powerful Force powers such as Force lightning and Force choke. He is also a skilled lightsaber duelist and is considered one of the most powerful Sith in Star Wars canon.

Kylo Ren's skill is way underrated. Though I agree he does not deserve a top 10 spot yet, and would've lost to the likes of Maul or Vader, he still deserves mention. First, the fact that he was even dueling Rey with the extreme injury that still affects him in Episode 8 simply shows that he is a very tough combatant.

Also, along with these injuries that he sustained, both Rey and Finn were very skilled in physical combat. I will admit that while he is a skilled duelist, his Force abilities far outshine his dueling abilities. Freezing bolts flying with extreme force, an ability we have never seen. He was also able to use Sith mind control on unwilling and strong-willed opponents, very nearly extracting the information from Rey. All of these feats show he is powerful, yet I still don't believe he deserves a top 10 spot yet. But, he has only been training for six years, so we shall definitely see his full power and skill in the future.

He was a Sith sorcerer and was able to resurrect the dead for an army. Plus, he removed his heart and replaced it with a Sith Crystal. Not to mention he was a Sith King.

The Inquisitor practiced the powers of the dark side and was trained in the use of a lightsaber. He wielded a rotary lightsaber, which he also used as a one-handed lightsaber, activating only one blade. In addition to swordsmanship, he used the sword's spin to break his opponent's concentration and end the fight with minimal effort.

The Grand Inquisitor had been a temple guard before the fall of the Republic and had extensive knowledge of the archives. This made him a very skilled and intelligent opponent. The Grand Inquisitor allowed himself to die when he failed to capture Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger, knowing his punishment would be severe.

He and the Second Sister were the most powerful Inquisitors, as they had the best training and were a significant threat. The others weren't that bad. The Eighth was lacking, but the First Inquisitor was the worst.

What was that quote? The one in KOTOR 2 where the character says that the Sith of that time (Kreia, Sion, Nihilus) were merely children playing with toys compared to the ancient Lords? So, the Lord of Hunger and the Lord of Pain are considered children flaunting their toys when compared to the ancient Lords of the Sith. Tulak Hord was also Vitiate's master. Vitiate used his own dreashade against his master and killed him. With his power intact, not even Vitiate challenged this guy, so he got his dreashade to consume Tulak's life force so that Vitiate even had a chance of killing Tulak Hord. This is all just a glimpse into what kind of Sith Tulak Hord was.

Tulak Hord was the greatest lightsaber master to have ever lived. He single-handedly killed over 3,000 Jedi and 4,100 soldiers with a lightsaber alone, while his servant and fellow Sith Warrior, Khem Val, fed on what was left of the fallen Jedi's Force energy. This made Khem Val more and more powerful with each Jedi that Tulak slaughtered, eventually making him a legend in Sith history.

Not to mention, Tulak was also a master of telekinesis. Khem Val quoted that his master once pulled a ship the size of the Endar Spire with ease. Tulak was once revered as the Lord of Hate, due to him feeding off his enemies' strength during battle and slaughtering them later.

It was also said that Tulak Hord single-handedly conquered over 100 worlds for his Sith Empire.

Additionally, Tulak was a master of Sith Sorcery. He made many tombs and teachings of the Sith Sorcery arts. Some of his tombs were rumored to hold the secret of immortality.

Tulak Hord's combat prowess had no equal, as proven when he broke through the Yn and Chabosh alone.

The only reason why he was killed was because of one of his apprentices, who assassinated him with a knife to the back while his Dashade ally fed on Tulak's Force energy, after Tulak had put Khem Val into a stasis chamber.

He was the leader of his entire order. He had to be powerful. He was able to fight Abeloth with the aid of Grandmaster Luke, which is a feat beyond practically any other living Force user at the time. He survived many attempts on his life until Cade Skywalker finally finished him. He was a great duelist and incredibly powerful with his Force lightning.

Darth Krayt is a powerful Sith Lord from the Star Wars expanded universe. He is known for his incredible strength in the Force, as well as his ability to lead and command armies of Sith Troopers. He is considered one of the most powerful Sith Lords in the Star Wars universe and is a formidable opponent for any Jedi.

Darth Krayt was skilled in the use of Force Illusions. The Dark Lord also appeared to have an affinity with the use of telepathy. He was also adept in the use of Mind Walking, allowing him to travel beyond shadows, and was proficient in the use of Force drain.